How Good Local SEO Can Fuel Your Business Success In 2021

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Good local SEO means when people search for local produce or service online, they find your business

Local search engine optimisation (SEO) can fuel your business success online more than any other digital marketing activity if you have a physical location.

And with local searches accounting for 46% of Google searches and 28% of those resulting in a purchase, it really is a no brainer for businesses with a physical location to invest in this area of digital marketing (source: ahrefs). According to Google, 72% of people who use a local search visit a physical store within a five mile radius of their location. (more stats can be found here).

Local SEO Can Fuel Your Business

Do you want to improve your SEO strategy? Contact our team for expert assistance

Local SEO is concerned with improving the search engine performance of your site for customers who have what’s known as local intent. This means they are searching a locality on Google for establishments, products or services, for example ‘digital growth agency Dublin’ or ‘web design Dublin’. Local SEO involves optimising your online presence to be found by people in close proximity to your business or who are planning to be in the area.

This search scenario is only going to become more and more prevalent as smartphones increasingly become the overwhelming main devices of choice for all searches. As of 2019, 61% of those who search on a mobile device are more likely to contact a local business if they have a mobile-friendly site (Source: HubSpot Marketing Statistics).

This market is dominated by Google and its maps platform. In order to increase the visibility of your site within maps it is critically important to optimise your Google my Business Profile by providing up to date opening times, contact information and services offered. The functionality of each profile is different given the industry the business is in – restaurants and cafes are different to hotels for example.

Customising the local URL for your business using Google tools can allow you to see how many people interact with your business within google analytics.

It is not only Google my business which must be considered when optimising for local search – sites with a particular local focus such as https://foursquare.com/ are critically important within this local context. There are also specific tasks which are very important for local SEO. These tasks include, but are not limited to, management of reviews, correction of local maps data and optimisation of a business’s knowledge graph.

Local SEO Will Improve Your Marketing Strategy

However, Google maps does not exist in a vacuum. Apple Maps Connect (Apple), OpenStreetMap (open source), Bing Places (Microsoft) and Yelp (Amazon) operate in their own niches – of course, these other major digital companies do not wish to be beholden to Google for their data.

It can prove difficult to manage many bricks and mortar locations online at scale. This is where firms such as https://www.yext.co.uk/ and https://uberall.com/en-gb come into play as they have direct relationships with the mapping providers themselves.

Having a strong foundation in catering to customers who have a local intent opens up other elements of digital marketing such as location extensions, local awareness ads and promoted pins within Google Ads.

Here are a few more statistics on local SEO which illustrate the importance of investing in a sound strategy for 2021:

  • After a smartphone search for something local to them, 76% of consumers visit the business within 24 hours (source: Think With Google)
  • More than 30% of searches on a mobile device relate to location (source: Think With Google).
  • 97% Receive information about local companies via the internet than anywhere else (source: SEO Tribunal)

Grofuse will ensure you stay abreast of change in local SEO trends and ahead of your competitors, with the help of a comprehensive local marketing strategy.

Please get in touch today for a no-obligation consultation and review of your local SEO performance. ROI +353 1 247 5294; NI/GB +44 2871 228800

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